June - Summer and Sunshine

Oy, the Terrible Twos are knocking at our door. CT's 2nd birthday is this weekend and his timing is perfect.

Getting dressed in the morning is an utter battle. It usually takes two of us to get him dressed. The kid apparently likes to be free.

Coming in from outside is an absolute throw down screamfest. Our summers are so short and we love taking advantage of the beautiful whether when we have it so I can't blame him for getting upset. He would play in the rain if we let him. When we close the garage door he drops his head and starts to pout. It is pathetic and cute all at the same time.

When we're playing baseball I usually count to three before I throw the ball. He counts along with me "Eh...Ehhh....Ehhhh" - It's really made me realize how long and drawn out my Minnesotan accent is when I hear him repeat things back to me.

On the talking front...he still only speaks when he wants to. Some days more than others.
Ya - We are currently hearing this more than "Nooooo"
When I try to correct him by saying "Yes" he just nods his head. He must think Yes and Ya have two different words.

No Way - Sounds like Oooo Way!!!

I Love You - It sounds nothing like "I Love You" but his tone mimics mine when I say it first, so I know that's what he's repeating back to me. This is often the case with most of his talking. It sounds like how I say it, but his words aren't very well articulated.

We took him to the Tater Daze parade near our house last week. At first he was frightened and unsure of what to think. About half way through he grasped how to snatch up the candy being thrown at him and he even started to do a little jig when the marching bands passed. I had a moment of nostalgia while were sitting there. Even though SLP didn't have a marching band, both Christos and I have fond memories of playing in pep band. (Me as a percussionist, he played the trumpet.) When I hear the music of a marching band I am overcome with emotion. The good kind. Tears welled up in my eyes as we sat there watching him experience the joy of music (this medium anyway) for the very first time.

CT really loves the outdoors. He loves digging in the dirt and playing with his sand table. He loves helping Papa with all his outdoor chores. He insists on 'driving' the John.Deere daily. He even dumps the sand from his sand table into the tractor scoop and then jumps on the tractor like he's going to go dump it somewhere. It won't be long before he'll be asking to drive it. The other day I was feeling brave and asked Christos if I could try to mow the lawn with the huge zero turn mower. What a joke!! First I nearly took out all the tools behind me as I tried to get it out of the garage. Apparently I was going in reverse. By the time Christos got it to the back yard, my blood pressure was rising. One stripe down the backyard and I was done. I was so afraid of taking out one of immature trees. It gave me a lot of appreciation and respect for the hard work that Christos does around the neighborhood.

Teeth Count: Officially 16 chompers in there. I finally got in there and was able to count them all. Why do kids think it's funny to bite? You've seen this, right? (I love how Charlie giggles at the end.)

Next up: Adventures in celebrating a 2nd birthday.

Father's Day at the Minnesota Landscape Arboretum